In South Sudan, Somalia, northeastern Nigeria and Yemen this spring, families hopefully watched the horizon for rain clouds. The rain never arrived—and after two years of severe drought, food and water continue to be desperately scarce. Twenty million people across the region are facing starvation due to a drought, as well as prolonged conflicts. The United Nations has called it the largest humanitarian crisis since its founding in 1945, and has called on the international community to act quickly.

Google.org and Googlers have donated more than $1 million to support critical services like screening children for malnutrition, running feeding programs and treating malnourished children in specialized health centers, as well as providing clean water, food, and shelter. And soon, Google volunteers will work hand in hand with Save the Children to support the development of a Hunger Assessment Portal, an interactive tool that will help on-the-ground decision-makers, policymakers and donors use data to make better decisions about where and how to deploy their resources.

This week, we’re helping to raise awareness for a first-of-its-kind coalition of major U.S.-based international nonprofit organizations that have joined together to help respond to the urgent hunger crisis. This Global Emergency Response Coalition will use donations to a new Hunger Relief Fund to bring much-needed food and supplies to those affected, and lay the groundwork for recovery. The coalition includes CARE, International Medical Corps, International Rescue Committee, Mercy Corps, Oxfam, Plan International, Save the Children and World Vision. Together, these organizations are working in more than 100 countries to reach millions of the world’s most vulnerable people with urgent assistance such as food, water, shelter, education and medical care, as well as resources to build resilience to future food crises. We’ll be linking to their site from the Google.com homepage, and providing advertising credits to raise awareness about their efforts.